Elon 1, Francis Marion 0

ELON, N.C. – Simi Dhaliwal’s goal in the 76th minute proved to be the difference-maker on Sunday at Rudd Field, as the Elon University women’s soccer team captured a 1-0 win over the visiting Francis Marion Patriots.

Kim Gardner fed the ball to Dhaliwal inside the box late in the second period, giving the junior an open look at the goal for the score. Dhaliwal has scored in three of Elon’s last four games.

Kate Murphy played all 90 minutes between the posts for the Maroon and Gold, tallying six saves against the Patriots. The shutout was Murphy’s second of the season.

Elon outshot Francis Marion 11-10 in the win, putting nine shots on goal. The Patriots ended the match with a 9-3 advantage in corners.

Katie Boyle played 33 minutes in her second game of the season, tallying a game-high three shots, all of which were on target.

The Phoenix opens up Southern Conference play on Friday when it heads to Cullowhee, N.C., to face Western Carolina.

Furman 4, Stetson 1

GREENVILLE, S.C. – Furman raced out to a 3-0 halftime lead on its way to a 4-1 victory over the Stetson Hatters in the nonconference women’s soccer finale for the Paladins on Sunday afternoon at Stone Soccer Stadium.

The win, Furman’s sixth consecutive triumph, improved the Paladins to 7-1-0 on the season, while Stetson dipped to 2-6-0.

Furman opened the scoring in the 18th minute when senior Martha Hall played Stephanie DeVita behind the Stetson defense and the freshman slotted a shot to the left side for her eighth goal of the season. Just 10 minutes later, DeVita slipped in behind the Hatters’ defense again and was taken down in the box. Hall stepped to the penalty spot and blasted the penalty kick past Stetson goalkeeper Victoria Troccoli at 27:24 for her first goal of 2012.

DeVita capped the first half scoring run at the 36:05 mark with her Southern Conference-leading ninth goal of the season. Ali Simpson sent a pass wide to the left side that Kristin Fennegan crossed through the box for the Simpsonville, S.C., native, who fired across the face of goal and off of the left post to give Furman a 3-0 lead at intermission.

The Hatters got on the board in the 58th minute as Alyssa Welch collected a failed clearance near the top of the box and lined a shot past Furman goalkeeper Maggie Grisell for her third tally of the season.

Furman’s Alyssa Althoff ended any suspense at the 78:44 when she got on the end of a Hall corner kick and bounced a shot into the right-hand corner for her third goal in the past two matches for the final 4-1 score line.

The Paladins managed a 21-12 edge in shot attempts, including a 12-3 advantage in shots on goal. The Paladins earned eight corner kicks to just three for the Hatters.

Freshman Rose Hull made two first-half saves, including a diving stop in the opening minutes of the match, to earn the victory in net for the Paladins. Troccoli stopped seven shots while taking the loss for Stetson.

Furman opens SoCon play next weekend with a two-game trip to Charleston, S.C. The Paladins face The Citadel at 4 p.m. on Friday before visiting College of Charleston at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

No. 3 Stanford 4, UNCG 0

SANTA CLARA, Calif. –The UNCG women's soccer team dropped its final nonconference game to No. 3 Stanford 4-0 Sunday at the Santa Clara Classic at Buck Shaw Stadium.

Stanford improved to 6-1-1 on the season while UNCG fell to 3-5 heading into SoCon action next weekend.

The Cardinal scored three second-half goals to pull away from the Spartans. Courtney Verloo added her second goal of the season in the 55th minute.

Two minutes later, Haley Rosen scored on a nice setup from Natalie Griffen to give Stanford a 3-0 lead. Sydney Payne ended the scoring with her fourth goal of the year in the 63rd minute.

UNCG had a couple of opportunities, but the defending national champions used a strong second half to defeat the Spartans.

Freshman goalkeeper Jamie Simmons finished with five saves.

The Spartans battled in the first half as Stanford scored the lone goal in the 22nd minute when Alex Doll fired a shot that beat the diving attempt from Simmons. Simmons finished the first half with three saves.

The Blue and Gold pressured the defending national champs with a strong defensive effort in the first 45 minutes, holding the Cardinal to just four shots on frame.

UNCG begins conference play by heading to Boone, N.C., to face Appalachian State on Friday at 7 p.m.

Campbell 2, Western Carolina 1 (2OT)

CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Western Carolina women’s soccer lost to Campbell 2-1 in the final minute of the second overtime Sunday at the Catamount Athletic Complex. It was the last match in the two-day Catamount Classic Tournament hosted by Western Carolina.

The Camels’ Caitlin Schnieder was awarded the golden goal to win the match, scoring with 1:07 left on the clock in the second OT. However, the play could have also been scored an own goal as a Western Carolina player also had a foot on the ball as both teams fought for control.

Schnieder, along with senior Catamount Katie Salmons, were both in front of the goal after Campbell’s corner kick. Both seemed to have contact with the ball that went off the back of Catamount goalie Katie Jacobs and into the goal for a Campbell victory.

It was the second unanswered goal in the match for Campbell. The Camels forced overtime with a goal at the 83:13 minute mark of regulation. Taylor Brown found the back of the goal off an assist by Michelle Procaccini, to break up Western Carolina’s shutout attempt and tie the match at 1-1.

Western Carolina (4-4) scored its only goal in the first half at 21:13. Freshman forward Markie-Lynn Studnicky took a pass from senior Samantha Hodge, who notched her first assist this season, and sent a header into the goal. It was Studnicky’s second goal in as many matches and her team-leading fourth goal of the season.

The Catamounts had control of the game defensively for most of the match before Campbell’s late heroics. Right out of the gate to start the second period, Western Carolina had a beauty of a chance to take a commanding 2-0 lead when Studnicky got a great look at the goal, but her shot sailed high over the goal post.

With less than six minutes left in regulation, it looked like Western Carolina might close out the game. McKenzie Hallstrom took a shot at the goal that looked like it might go in, but it sailed just wide.

Western Carolina had 13 shots in the match and Campbell had 17. The Catamounts kept shooting in the match and looking for the goal as Studnicky had four shots while Laura Greb, Hodge and Hallstrom each had three. Facing 17 shots by Campbell, Jacobs had five saves in the contest.

Studnicky, Hodge and sophomore Christina White were named to the Catamount Classic All-Tournament Team.

The Catamounts host Elon on Friday in their Southern Conference home opener. Match time is set for 7 p.m. at the Catamount Athletic Complex.

Catamount Classic All-Tournament Team: Brooke Kelly - Gardner-Webb; Gayle Foster- Louisiana-Lafayette; Hayden Gibson - Louisiana-Lafayette; Shelby Isley - Louisiana-Lafayette; Markie-Lynn Studnicky - Western Carolina; Samantha Hodge - Western Carolina; Christina White - Western Carolina; Caitlin Schnieder – Campbell; Grace Howell-Harries – Campbell; Sam Taylor Gayler Foster – Campbell; Amanda Moorefield (MVP) – Campbell.

Jacksonville State 2, Samford 1

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford University women’s soccer team suffered a second straight heartbreaking defeat Sunday as the Bulldogs were upended by the Jacksonville State Gamecocks, 2-1, in their final regular-season, nonconference match of the 2012 campaign at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium.

For a second consecutive outing, Samford (3-5) outshot its opponent by a hefty margin but fell short in a 2-1 decision. The Bulldogs outshot Kennesaw State, 25-6, in a narrow 2-1 loss Friday. Samford turned in a 22-7 advantage in shot attempts versus the Gamecocks on Sunday.

With its victory, Jacksonville State (7-2-1) remained undefeated on the road this season at 4-0 and snapped a six-match losing streak against Samford. The Gamecocks’ previous win over their in-state rival Bulldogs occurred in 2002 by a score of 1-0.

Jacksonville State’s game-winning goal was scored with less than six minutes remaining in regulation. At exactly 84:23, the Gamecocks’ Courtney Hurt gathered a long forwarding pass from Brianna Boutziouvis on the right sideline, moved directly ahead for a few yards and then pivoted past a Samford defender and placed a shot that hooked perfectly into the left corner of the goal.

The score was Hurt’s fifth of the 2012 season.

Throughout the entire match, Samford held the run of play and possession was predominantly spent on the Jacksonville State’s end of the field. The Bulldogs rattled off 13 shot attempts in the first half and scored their lone goal of the contest in the 39th minute as sophomore Amanda Abbott knocked in her second score of the weekend.

On Abbott’s goal, which occurred at exactly 38:17 in the opening period, true freshman Lindy Robichaux sent a perfectly placed corner kick into the box from the left side. Robichaux’s pass found Abbott right at her feet, and she fired a laser toward the right half of the goal. Jacksonville State goalkeeper Ali Koenig made an improbable diving save, but the ball rebounded directly to Abbott and she slammed home the goal to the left corner.

Samford seemed to be cruising into the half with a 1-0 lead when Jacksonville State quickly countered with a goal of its own at 42:42 to equalize the score at 1-1.

The Gamecocks’ first goal was scored by true freshman Boutziouvis and was assisted by another true freshman, Kat Dowd. On the goal, Dowd sent a high looping cross from left to right to Boutziouvis just outside the box on the right flank. Boutziouvis moved in slightly toward the center of the field and one-timed a shot into the back of the net.

The goal was Boutziouvis’ fourth of the season.

Samford finished Sunday’s contest with 12 corner kicks as opposed to one from Jacksonville State. Junior midfielder Trine Taule led the Bulldogs with five shot attempts, while sophomore forward Brittany Hoffman added four and junior midfielder Michelle Moll rattled off three.

The Samford University soccer team will next be in action Friday at 4 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs begin SoCon play on the road against the Georgia Southern Eagles in a key early season conference showdown to be held in Statesboro, Ga.

William & Mary 3, Davidson 0

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The Davidson Wildcats were unable to slow down the Tribe’s Mallory Schaffer, who scored two goals and assisted on another, falling on the road to William & Mary by the count of 3-0 at MFS at Albert-Daly Stadium in women’s soccer action Sunday.

The ‘Cats’ three-match unbeaten streak was halted as they fell to 2-4-2, while W&M ran its mark to 6-2 on the campaign.

Schaffer did all her damage in the first half in assisting the Tribe to a 3-0 advantage, which would hold to be the final score. She first picked up an assist on a cross in the box to Emory Camper for the first goal of the game at the 19:29 mark.

In the 37th minute, Schaffer took a cross and finished with a one-touch in the box to push the Tribe lead to 2-0. She capped off her big offensive day with another goal just before the half ended, at the 44:45 mark, off a through ball from Nicole Baxter.

Davidson was held to just three shots, putting one of them on goal. W&M fired off 18 total shots and won the corner battle, 5-1.

Rachel Locke played all 90 minutes in goal and registered five saves to give her 31 on the year.

Southern Conference play begins for Davidson next weekend when it opens up at home vs. Chattanooga at 7 p.m. Friday and Samford at 2 p.m. Sunday.